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Baba Balak Nath Temple, Deotsidh

Deotsidh, Chakmoh village, Hamirpur district, Himachal Pradesh

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Baba Balak Nath Temple, Deotsidh
Photo: Rajthakurdxb, CC BY-SA 4.0

About

Deotsidh is the main shrine of Sidh Baba Balak Nath, a much-loved folk deity of Himachal, Punjab, Haryana and nearby states. It is a natural cave on a hilltop at Chakmoh village in Hamirpur district, on the border of Bilaspur district. Devotees believe this was Baba ji's home, and a murti of Baba ji sits in the cave. Devotees offer 'rot', a sweet bread of wheat flour with gur or sugar, cooked in ghee. Some offer a goat as a sign of love; it is not sacrificed but is looked after. Sunday is Baba ji's special day. The temple is run by a temple trust.

The story

Devotees believe Baba Balak Nath came in every yuga to help the poor and suffering, and that by Shiv ji's blessing he remains a child-yogi forever. Tradition says that in Kalyug he was born in Kathiawar in Gujarat. As a boy he left home to seek God and took initiation from Guru Dattatreya on Girnar hill. Later he reached Shahtalai in Himachal. There Mata Ratno gave him work grazing her cows and sent him roti and lassi in return. Lost in tapasya, Baba ji would keep the food aside. One day, when Ratno complained that her cows were not looked after, Baba ji brought out the rotis from the trunk of a tree and the lassi from the ground; devotees hold this as his leela. Shahtalai, about 6 km from Deotsidh, is believed to be where he meditated. Baba ji lived as a lifelong brahmachari, so by temple custom women devotees do not enter the cave; a raised platform built directly opposite the cave is where they take darshan.

Visiting

The temple is open all year; spring and autumn are most pleasant, and the month-long Chaitra mela and Sundays are very crowded. Deotsidh is about 45 km from Hamirpur town. Many devotees walk up from Shahtalai singing bhajans. From the hilltop you can see the Bhakra dam and the Naina Devi hills. Nearby are Shahtalai, Naina Devi and Chintpurni.

Festivals

  • Chaitra mela (about 14 March to 13 April, a month long)
  • Holi and Navratri

Devta dhams

Sources